The Role of the Gut Microbiota and the Immune System in the Development of Autism.

Autism| |spectrum| |disorders| |(ASDs)| |are| |neurodevelopmental| |disorders| |that| |present| |with| |social| skills| |and| |communication| |challenges,| |restricted| |interest,| |and| |repetitive| |behavior.| |The| |specific| cause |of| |autism| |is| |not| |well| |understood| |yet.| |However,| |numerous| |studies| |indicated| |that| |environmental| |and| |genetic| |factors,| |dysregulated| |immune| |response,| |and| |alterations| |to| |the| |balance| |and| |content| |of| |the| |gut| |microbiota| |are| |implemented| |in| |the| |development| |of| |autism.| |Many| |non-pharmacological| |interventions| |are| |nominated| |to| |manage |autism,| |including| |family| |support| |services| |and| |psychoeducational| |methods|. Moreover,| |different| |pharmacological| |therapy| |modalities| |are| |recommended| |for| |children| |with| |ASD.| |Learning| |more| |about| |the| |brain,| |immune| |system, |and| |gut| |connections| |could| |assist| |in early| |diagnosis| |and| |treatment| |of| |this| |devastating| |neurodevelopmental| |disorders| |as| |an| |early| |intervention| |in| |ASD| |could| |improve| |a| |child's| |overall| |development.| We| |gathered| |data| |from| |relevant| |previously| |published| |articles| |on| |PubMed| |to| |evaluate |the| |role| |of| |the| |gut| |microbiota| |and| |the| |immune| |system| |on| |the| |development| |of| |autism.|.

Can Nutritional Adequacy Help Evade Neurodegeneration in Older Age? A Review.

There is an increase in susceptibility to chronic and debilitating diseases with aging. The reason for the underlying neuronal degeneration and normal aging of the brain remains elusive. Different research studies have been conducted to discover how the brain degenerates and the importance of vitamins' role in the neurocognitive decline. Comprehensive literature research was conducted using all relevant data available from PubMed and Google scholar for this article. There has been evidence linking the consumption of essential nutrients to preventing the disease conditions that result in cognitive decline. This article provides the latest scientific advances specific to how dietary nutrients and non-nutrient may affect cognitive aging. An adequate supply of nutrients like vitamin B2 (riboflavin), vitamin B12, vitamin E, essential fatty acid (omega-3 fatty acid), and flavonoids play a vital role in ensuring healthy aging, enhancing memory, and strengthening neuroprotection. These nutrients help in neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's. We recommend more research studies to determine the underlying mechanism of how these essential nutrients work in the prevention of cognitive decline. These studies will help provide the evidence needed for new dietary recommendations for combating these diseases that often affect aging patients.

Minerals: An Untapped Remedy for Autoimmune Hypothyroidism?

For decades, the focus of managing autoimmune hypothyroidism has been on thyroxine replacement. Correcting lab parameters such as thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) has been a primary goal. The increasing prevalence of Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) continues to impact the quality of life in patients. We believe a holistic approach to this disease entity, considering its underlying complex etiopathogenesis, would benefit patients. Nutraceuticals are combinations of essential nutrients and are becoming a part of novel medical treatments despite the lack of regulation. This review aims to present a concise summary of recent developments regarding minerals such as zinc, selenium, magnesium, iron, and their potential clinical benefit as nutraceuticals in patients with HT. We have explored the potential benefits and associations of these minerals in HT and thyroid function. We reviewed relevant articles, metanalyses, and clinical trials in literature platforms such as PubMed, PubMed Central, and Google Scholar. Significant data found in the literature suggesting a potential health benefit of these minerals in HT though there were many studies to the contrary. Many trials demonstrated the restoration of residual symptoms, reversal of HT-associated thyroid morphological changes, and improvement in thyroid functions. Many of these trials lack statistical power due to the small sample sizes, and their external validity may be questionable due to unaccounted confounding factors. In our opinion, to support an evidence-based holistic clinical approach, further scientific evidence is needed. The association of these elements in thyroid function necessitates more large scale pragmatic trials to elucidate the benefits of nutraceuticals in HT.

Congestive Heart Failure Hospitalizations and Cannabis Use Disorder (2010-2014): National Trends and Outcomes.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Prior studies have suggested that cannabis use is an independent risk factor for heart failure. With increasing recreational use of cannabis and decriminalization policies, cannabis use is expected to add to the burden of heart failure, but there is still limited data. Therefore, we utilized the Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) database (2010-2014) to study the national trends and outcomes among cannabis users admitted for congestive heart failure (CHF). METHODS:  We queried the NIS database and identified CHF as the primary diagnosis with a co-diagnosis of cannabis use disorder (CUD). Trends were analyzed with the linear-by-linear association. RESULTS: Total CHF admissions (N = 4,596,024) with comorbid CUD (N = 23,358 (0.5%)) were identified. An increasing prevalence trend from 0.4% to 0.7% (P= 0.001) was seen. CUD patients had a mean age of 49.78 years, 79% were males, 55.4% were African Americans, and 73.6% earn ≤ 50th percentile median household income of the patient's ZIP code. Inpatient deaths (1.1% vs. 3.1%) were lower (P<0.001), and mean length of stay (LOS) was shorter among cannabis users compared to non-users (P=0.001). The mean LOS and total hospitalization costs demonstrated an increasing trend (Ptrend = 0.001 and Ptrend < 0.001) respectively. Alcohol abuse and depression were more prevalent among CUD compared to non-CUD patients. CONCLUSION: CUD was associated with reduced inpatient deaths, but the prevalence of CUD and hospital charges is on the rise in the CHF inpatient population in addition to shorter mean LOS. Notwithstanding, these above findings prompt further research into its underlying mechanisms along with a probable causal relationship between cannabis and heart failure.